A Sneak Peek of the next Dragon Story-A VERY DRAGON CHRISTMAS!

Just for you! An UNEDITED Snippet of an ALL-NEW HOLIDAY STORY featuring a MacAllen Dragon and the woman made for him by the Universe!

ENJOY!

The story comes out 12/12/24!

“Come out. Come out wherever you are,” the sing-songing voice of her friend danced upon the breeze as it blew through the canyon.

Trying with all her might not to laugh out loud, she tightly clenched her lips as her shoulders bounced up and down, and her whole body vibrated with excitement. It was so hard not to giggle and give away her location, but she was determined to win this round of their favorite game.

“I know you’re here, Abigail Annabelle Addams.” Stopping right before the low-hanging branches of a rather large Texas Madrone tree bopped her in the head, the blond curls flowing from the crown of her head floated like fairy wings as she snapped her head from side to side. “Don’t make me pull out the big wand. You won’t like it if I pull out the big wand.”

“You say that crap all the time,” Abbie teased. “Like you need a wand.” Chuckling, she threw her voice to the other side of McKittrick Creek, hoping to keep her friend guessing. “I can feel your Magic from a mile away and you’re not even using it. A wand would be a waste of Ashwood and space.”

“Ha! I got you now.” Sydney Kavanaugh, the closest thing Abbie had to a best friend, barked with laughter. “You messed up and gave me a clue. You’re a mile away, aren’t ya’? You just told me to meet you here to keep me on my toes, didn’t you?”

“I didn’t say that.”

Teleporting to one of the top branches of an ancient Maple tree, she ended up about seventy feet in the air and loved every minute of it. She could see the land she loved for miles, and best of all, Syd would never think to look up.

Another flash, and she was fifty yards closer and a few feet higher. Kneeling on the thick, sturdy limb, she took cover among the dense, brilliantly colored red, yellow, and brown leaves and tried to object, “I said…”

“You said that you could sense me from a mile away, therefore…”

“Therefore, you put two and two together and came up with fourteen.”

“Ha. Ha. Ha.” Stopping short, the curvy blond propped her left hand on her hip, rolled her eyes, and shook her head. Then, with a twinkle in her bright blue eyes, she teased, “Like I said, don’t make me pull out my big wand. You how much I hate to lose.”

“Like I said, you don’t need-nor do you have a wand. And I know how much you hate to lose, but no matter what, you always play fair. So, buckle up, Buttercup. We’re about to have some fun.”

Standing up, she once again thanked the Great Creator and all The Powers That Be for her short stature. Being just barely five feet tall definitely had its advantages. She never understood why so many of her friends wanted to be taller. Abbie loved being shorter than the average bear. Not only could she hide in places others wouldn’t fit, but she also rarely bumped her head when she was exploring treacherous terrain and scouting locations for one of her many photo shoots. Getting the perfect shot had always been the goal, and there wasn’t much that stopped her.

From the moment her dad’s mom, Grandma Mary, put a camera in her hand to help with the overwhelming grief of losing her parents, Abbie knew it was what she was meant to do. Through the lens of that Leica, the best camera money could buy at the time, and with the Enchantment she’d inherited from both her mom and dad, the world literally came to life.

She’d been asked to take pictures for the yearbook at school, and that had been fun. Portraits were okay. Candid shots could be fun because teenagers were such goofballs.

But her passion was always in the beautiful sites of the great outdoors.

Whether it was a landscape featuring the yellow blossoms of the Guadalupe violets that only grew on the vertical cliff faces she’d seen every day of her life or the Rainbow trout jumping and splashing in McKitterick Creek, that was where she wanted to be. Those were the images she wanted to share with the world. Everyone needed to see how special things could be outside their little bubbles.

She’d captured the stunning sight of a tornado tearing a path through the Chihuahuan Desert and even gotten a shot of the massive, lumbering, yet still incredibly elusive, Mexican Gopher Tortoise digging a hole on the apron of her burrow to lay her eggs. The subjects she sought out and the pictures she took spoke not only to her heart but also immortalized the beauty and majesty of things most people would never see. They told the story of the land she loved and the beauty that could be found if a person slowed down, took a deep breath, and realized the gifts of the Great Creator, the Universe, God with a capital G, and all The Powers That Be had given them when those incredible Beings breathed life into the big blue and green ball all living beings called home.

At eighteen, she ventured off the reservation after being accepted into the very prestigious Photography program at the New York Institute of Photography. She would never forget the day she got the letter. It had been the surprise of a lifetime and one she would spend her life thanking her grandmother for.

The squeak of the screen door as she pulled it open always made her smile. No matter what kind of day she’d had, that sound told her that she was home. Most thought she smiled because she and Grandma Mary had forgotten to buy WD40 so many times that it had become a joke amongst all their friends and family, but they couldn’t have been more wrong.

That whine of aluminum rubbing against aluminum said, ‘You’ve done t. You’re in your happy place, Abbie Addams.’ And the true, heartfelt happiness came when Marilyn, the mixed breed Chow Chow she’d rescued ten years earlier, raced down the long, galley-like breezeway with a twinkle in her eye and so much unconditional love in her heart that it made her golden and auburn fur shine in the fading rays of the sun.

The breezeway, sort of like a sun porch, was narrow and long, with windows on one side to let the beautiful sunlight in to wash away the shadows. Behind those windows that were a bugger to wash, there were screens.

At the first warm breeze, Grandma threw open the windows, letting the cool winds carry in the glorious aroma of the bluish violet Gayfeathers and bright red blossoms of the Cardinal flowers from the Guadalupe Mountains. It was glorious and just one of the many perks of living on the Res.

Opposite the windows were knotty pine panels that had been put over the red brick to allow for decorating. Of course, Grandma Mary had hung hooks for coats and jackets, made rows of short steps from the hardwood of a fallen tree for muddy boots, and collected loads of mismatched, eclectic furniture that somehow all fit together just the way she wanted them to. That porch or breezeway or whatever anyone wanted to call it became the unofficial welcoming room for any and all who came to visit pretty much the day after it was built and was Abbie’s favorite place in the whole house.

“I’m home, Grandma,” she called out. “It’s my turn to cook. Whatcha want for dinner?” Not waiting for an answer, she kept right on going. “I was thinkin’ we could try out that new brick oven the MacAllen boys built. Doesn’t a homemade pizza sound ah-mazing? I’ve been thinking about it all day."

“Anything works for me,” Grandma answered sunshine in her voice. “But first, you need to come here. I’ve got something important to show you.”

Furrowing her brow as she ruffled Marilyn’s fur, Abbie whispered, “What is she up to, Girl?”

Grumbling, her version of talking, the Chow Chow mix rubbed her nose in Abbie’s outstretched palm, looking for the treats she knew were in the young woman’s pockets. “Yeah, well, I have no clue what you said, but you can have your cookies anyway. I know you’ve been waitin' all day.”

Tossing one of the heart-shaped treats into the air, she clapped and cheered when Marilyn jumped so high her feet left the ground and snatched the treat between her teeth. “There ya’ go! That’s my girl.”

Loving that her furry friend yipped and danced on her hind feet after devouring the treat, Abbie handed the pup another and headed toward the doorway into the kitchen. Stopping when both feet were barely over the threshold, she couldn’t believe her eyes.

Inhaling sharply, she held her breath while taking in the largest array of camera equipment she’d ever seen anywhere other than the Photo and Hobby Shop on Mills Avenue in downtown Valentine. From a first rate leather bag with a crossbody strap to lenses of every variety to a tripod so new she’d only seen it in a trade magazine, there was so much stuff she didn’t know where to start.

Gaze flying to her Grandmother’s, she breathed, “What is…? How did you…? I can’t even…”

“You can’t even finish a sentence?” Grandma Mary laughed, her smoky voice so filled with love and adoration that Abbie’s heart skipped a beat. “You’re at a loss for words? Wow! That’s a first.”

Before she could ask the matriarch of the Addams Family what was happening, the older woman was off her stool and across the room with a smile so bright it rivaled the sun over Guadalupe Peak. Handing her an envelope, she ordered in the most loving way, “Open that thing before I lose my mind. Even though I know…” She tapped her temple with the tip of the index finger of her free hand. “…what it says, I still need to see it in black and white.”

Doing as she was told without the slightest hesitation, Abbie tore into the envelope, pulled out the tri-folded paper, and with a flourish that rivaled Indiana Jones’ crack of a whip, she had the fancy, embossed stationary flat on the counter in less than a minute.

It took several starts and three complete readings of the letter before she looked up at her grandmother in complete shock. “But how can this be? I didn’t…”

“You didn’t have to,” Mary Addams proudly announced. “I did it. I put together your portfolio, filled out the application, and even got letters of recommendation from your teachers, Principal Shultz, and the Mayor himself.”

“But how did you know…?”

“Darlin, haven’t you learned by now that nothin’ gets past me?”

Opening her mouth, not sure what was going to come out, Abbie was almost happy when her grandma once again cut her off. “I promised your momma and daddy that I would take care of you. From the day your momma found out she was pregnant, all those two ever talked about was wanting the best for you. They wanted to make all your dreams come true. They…” Stopping as her voice cracked, Grandma Mary inhaled deeply, smiled the smile Abbie had come to count on, and exhaled.

Running her fingers through the tight salt and pepper curls atop her head, she nodded, “Kari and Andrew wanted you to be proud of your heritage, to accomplish all your dreams, and to be whatever your little heart desired–no matter what that happened to be.” Moving closer, she laid her hand on Abbie’s shoulder. “They are looking down from the Heavens with such pride. Can you feel it? I know I can.”

“Yes, Grandma, I sure can feel them.” Closing the scant distance between them, Abbie pushed up on her toes and hugged Mary with everything she had.

Pulling back when Marilyn whined and pushed between them, she knew her eyes were full of unshed tears as she looked at Grandma and confidently professed, “Thank you so very much. I’m gonna make all of you so proud.”

“Oh, darlin’, you already do that every day, in every way.”

Can't wait to hear what you think of this snippet!

XOXO, Julia